Ongoing History of New Music

This is "The Reunions: Part 3" The final part of a series that first aired in 2009 and we thought it was time to revisit it...see what bands did survive a reunion and which ones have not. Now something to note about this series. Some bands have since broken apart again or gone off in an entirely different direction. And some are no longer together because a member has since passed on.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Everyone needs a hobby, something to distract from the job…something that’s just for you…something that allows you to pursue a passion that maybe only you understand… For example, Flea is big into chess…when the Chili Peppers on the road, he’ll often challenge people to games, including grand masters who are invited backstage for the purpose of playing flea… Geddy Lee of Rush used to be very, very big into signed baseballs, especially those from the old Negro League… Neil Young finds model trains very relaxing…Iggy Pop paints…Bob Dylan does sculpture…Bryan Adams is into photography…Slash collectors pinball machines…guy Berriman of Coldplay has an incredible collection of cars, ranging from classic Porsche’s to a Bugatti Veyron…and then there’s Stephen Morris of New Order…he collects old military vehicles, including tanks… Hey, if you have the interest and the money, why not?... This brings me to Kirk Hammett of Metallica…Kirk is a fan of horror memorabilia…but his biggest passion are posters from old horror movies…his collection is so big and so comprehensive and so well-preserved that it’s the subject of exhibitions at major museums, including the Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto…why movie posters?...I sat down with kirk to find out… Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This is "The Reunions: Part 2" A series that first aired in 2009 and we thought it was time to revisit it...see what bands did survive a reunion and which ones have not. Now something to note about this series. Some bands have since broken apart again or gone off in an entirely different direction. And some are no longer together because a member has since passed on. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sometimes, a band can survive their entire career without a line-up change...looking at you Radiohead, Coldplay, U2....others have members leave, hello Oasis, or get kicked out. See The Clash. Meanwhile some bands just decide that it's time to pack it in. Call it a day. Stop the train and get off. There could be any number of reasons for this; you grow apart, you don't have anything else to say, you can't stand each other anymore...that sort of thing. And when a band does break up, many fans ask the same question: "So when are you getting back together?!?!" And many times band do! For a variety of reasons...and many reasons that come back to money. Anyhow, this is the first of a series we did a number of years ago on bands that had reunited. Now something to note about this series. Some bands have since broken apart again or gone off in an entirely different direction. And some are no longer together because a member has since passed on. This is "The Reunions: Part 1" Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This time we take a deep dive into the history of Mumford and Sons...the earliest and mostly unknown aspects of their career.  If you're a superman...you might already know some of this. Or maybe not! Lots to digest in this episode. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Wait, There’s More is a daily Global News podcast released every afternoon just in time for your commute home. On this episode, protests have erupted in Hong Kong as tens of thousands of people speak out against legislation that would allow the territory’s citizens to be extradited to Mainland China. Demonstrators tried to storm government buildings and police responded with tear gas and rubber bullets. Host Tamara Khandaker explores Hong Kong’s precarious relationship with China since the end of British governance in 1997 and what the implications of such a major change will mean for the safety of its citizens with the help of Crystal Yeung, a Canadian human rights lawyer living in Hong Kong; Grace Yeung, a Hong Kong resident, who has taken to the streets to protest; and BBC journalist Vincent Ni. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We're taking a look back at the glorious days of Britpop. That incredible time in the 90's which lasted about  6 years where it seemed Cool Britannia ruled the airwaves and everyone was having a great time! London was swinging again and British acts were selling tens of millions of albums the world over. It was fresh, it was fun, and it was cool. And then it was over...collapsed by the weight of over exposure, boredom, and drugs. Lots and lots of drugs. Let's take a look back to see how this all happened. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Welcome to another episode in our series of having bands and musicians tell their history in their own words. This time we go back to our interview in 2009 for the amazing Franz Ferdinand! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The human body is basically a bag of water with a bunch of chemicals mixed in…that’s an over-simplification, of course, but it’s an accurate description of the squishy bits that make up us… It’s also true that every once in a while, something—or maybe a lot of things—go a little wonky with these squishy bits…yeah, we often hear of some guy up in the Ural Mountains who’s 117 years old who credits his longevity to bacon and unfiltered cigarettes…but that’s the exception… The rest of us have to constantly be vigilant about our health, eating right, sleeping enough, reducing stress—all that sort of stuff…but not everything is preventable…bad genes…disease…accidents… These same rules apply to the musicians we follow…they’re human, just like us…and every once in a while, we hear about their health challenges...and quite often, they’re very open about their issues…they want to be honest with their fans—and maybe by bringing attention to their situation, they can encourage awareness or those with similar health problems to seek treatment… In other cases, we only found out there was a problem after the fact…that knowledge has helped us understand what happened… So, without betraying any confidences or digging into private health records, here are some musicians who have battled their bodies and their brains, just like us regular folk… Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Not all bands hit it out of the park right away…they need a few albums and a couple of long tours before things start to fall into place… Take the Red Hot Chili Peppers, for example…their career really didn’t start to blossom until their fourth album…same thing with Muse—at least in North America…they might have been playing arenas in Europe…but when it came to their fourth album, they were still playing clubs on this side of the Atlantic… Same thing with R.E.M...they had a strong cult following through four records before they were able to cross over into mainstream consciousness… And for The Black Keys?...it took until albums number six for them to have their big breakthrough… These success stories underscore the need for patience and foresight on behalf of record labels, managers, and everyone else associated with the welfare of a particular artist…if you honestly see potential, then you gotta play the long game, one that may stretch out over years… And then you gotta look at things from the artist’s perspective…is the band prepared to live through some lean and dark times on their way to some kind of success?... This brings me to Twenty One Pilots…they blew up with the “Blurryface” album in 2015…but before that were six years of really hard slogging when almost no one knew who they were…let’s get caught up on that part of their story, shall we?... Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices